A Crying Heart
by Vampgrl1
Summary: One day, Inuyasha breaks Kagome's heart with Kikyo...again. Now 1 year later, she's changed into something dark. Then the Band of Seven ask her to join. Will she accept and live the mercenarys life?
1. Prologue: Why Inuyasha?

**New Story!**

**Ok I just wanted to say that this story belongs to Xiao Hui Lang. I give full credit to her for the first ten chapters. After that, I will take over and it will be my own writings. Now, I will change a few parts so that it wont be exactly the same for the first 10 chapters but...yeah. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha.**

"Inuyasha…" Kagome whispered as she watched the scene before her unfold. Kikyo was wrapped in a passionate embrace with Inuyasha, both kissing the other harshly. Kagome felt the burn of tears that threatened to fall from her large chocolate eyes. She saw the couple going further than she would have wanted and let her legs take her away, silent tears flowing over her porcelain face.

"Why am I always second to her? Why doesn't anyone see me for me, and not Kikyo? Kikyo this, Kikyo that. Am I not good enough anymore?" Kagome whispered into the wind.

She looked up to see the stars twinkling. They reminded her of all the tears she had shed for the ungrateful mutt. She knew he was happy, but it saddened her to see he was happy with someone else, even if he didn't admit it.

She decided to go home to her time and train with specialists, wanting to increase her survival chances in battles, and excel Kikyo's skills, proving once and for all she wasn't Kikyo. She was going to change herself completely…

XxXxX

Bankotsu had been watching Kagome in the shadows for the past three months. He secretly loved her, with reasons still unknown to him. He would watch her every time he could get away from his brothers, namely Jakotsu. She seemed so lively during the day, but at night, her true emotions would arise. She would sneak away from camp every night and silently weep, she would cry for her broken heart, Inuyasha's infidelity, and how she felt so alone. He knew the source of her depression was none other than the half-demon named Inuyasha.

He hated the half-demon with all his being. He envied how loyal she was to him, no matter how much he had hurt her. Kagome would stay by him even when he had crushed her heart so many times. He would apologize to her, promising he would never do it again, then go break it the next evening.

One day, she just vanished down the Bone Eaters well. He raced over and didn't see her at the bottom and panicked. He stood there watching, waiting for her to return, so he could once again bask in her beauty. He wanted for months, convinced that she would return. Every night, he would sit at the lip of the well, expecting to see her emerge and attempt to climb out, but every night, he was disappointed. Yet he still knew that someday, she would return.

XxXxX

She returned to the feudal era about a year later, looking and feeling completely different. She wore heavy black eyeliner around her eyes. She wore red eye contacts that matched to color of her highlights. She wore a black shirt that had the words: _Love kills you inside _written in bold red letters. Her pants were black and baggy with chains on the sides. Strapped to her back were two long fang shaped katanas. Around her waist, she had a gun, a bag of gun powder and bullets, and a dagger.

She walked to Kaede's village, receiving strange stares from the villagers. Their murmurs easily reached her ears.

_"Who is she?"_

_"She looks dangerous."_

_"What is she wearing?"_

_"Could she be related to Kagome-sama?"_

She let a smirk find its way to her pale face, crimson eyes glinting with hate and malice. She entered Kaede's hut, expecting to hear horrified screams, but instead, she heard...

"KAGOME?! WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU?! YOU JUST DISAPPEARED ONE DAY AND HAVEN'T COME BACK!!" Sango shrieked while pulling her friend into a warm hug, something Kagome missed a lot.

"So good to have you back Kagome." Miroku smiled warmly, but seemed confused why she was dressed that way.

"It seems you have changed your wardrobe Kagome. Why the strange dark and evil look of all things?" Sango asked.

"This is what I have become over this past year. People from my time now live in fear of me, knowing that one wrong move can result in serious injury. I don't blame them. I expected the same outcast treatment here, but it's obvious I didn't get it... yet." Kagome's voice was no longer warm and gentle.  
It was monotone, cold and dead, much like Sesshomaru's. Her friends shuddered at the arctic coolness of their friends' voice.

"Say, where's that bastard Inuyasha? I bet he's out there with Kikyo right?" Kagome's even voice stayed steady, no matter how much she missed her friends, she was dead inside, she could no longer feel.

"Uhh, Kagome, I don't know how to tell you this, but... Inuyasha found Kikyo and mated with her. After that, we all got luck somehow and defeated Naraku."  
Miroku was very blunt.

"Wow... that was short, sweet, and to the point. But I don't care. I need to have a little chat with him."

She withdrew one of her katanas and licked the blade.

Sango was shocked.

"My, Kagome, you have changed... er... quite a bit." Kagome let out a low snicker.

"If you think I'm the same Kagome you met a year ago, then you are dreadfully mistaken my dear Sango. Inuyasha and Kikyo have made me what I am now. I crave revenge. Anything to satisfy my need for his blood and her tears. Maybe I'll keep his fuzzy ears as a memento. I've suffered more than those idiots could ever imagine, and I demand to get back at them." They saw her now red orbs fill with bloodlust and hate. They could not believe she was the same gentle, friendly girl from before. She was now the complete opposite of her old self.

"I'll be leaving now. I've got someone to take care of. Tell Inuyasha not to come after me, i will come to him when the time is right."

With that, Kagome bounded out of the room, disappearing into the forest, leaving the pair shocked and confused. What happened to her?

**AN: What ya think? Review!**


	2. Joining the Enemy

**Here you go.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha!**

"Bankotsu, you can come out now." Kagome said loudly, her voice softening a bit. Bankotsu was a bit shocked and jumped from his hiding place.

"How'd you know I was here?" Bankotsu questioned. Her hard gaze softened, her red eyes allowing some emotion through. Bankotsu stared at the woman before him. She was completely different, clothes, appearance, attitude, everything.

He liked it.

"I have been trained to sense all life around me. Your presence is always in range. May I ask why?"

"Uhh… I, er… hmm…" He stammered, embarrassed about being found out. "I was hired to kill you."

`Nice save.' He thought to himself.

"Oh, then why not kill me now, when I am standing in front of you?" Kagome raised her brow. She could sense his lie, but decided to have some fun and tease him.

"What if I don't feel like it? I don't _have_ to follow orders you know, I am still free to make my own decisions." Bankotsu defended. Kagome wanted to laugh at his pathetic attempt to cover up the reason why he was spying on her. `That is so cute! Too bad he is the enemy.'

Even though he found her new form attracting, Bankotsu sort of missed her old self, the happy, friendly Kagome. He wanted to see her warm smile, not a cold masked face. He almost sighed, almost.

XxXxX

Kagome eventually got tired of teasing him and retreated back to the village.  
`There was a hidden emotion in his eyes, I can feel it, but I don't know what it is.' Kagome remained thoughtful the rest of the evening, trying to decipher Bankotsu's secret emotion.

Sango and Miroku were always talking about what had happened since she had left, like the two getting together, Shippo leaving with Kirara to help find Kohaku, and Inuyasha's mating. Kagome wasn't the least disturbed by the fact that Inuyasha had mated, what bothered her was Shippo leaving alone with Kirara, somewhere to look for Sango's brother. She may have lost her former friendliness and warmth, but her sense of protection was still going strong, perhaps even stronger than before.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN HE'S GONE WITH KIRARA?! HOW COULD YOU JUST LET MY SON GO OUT THERE TO LOOK FOR YOUR BROTHER?!" Kagome was pissed. Seeing her newly discovered aggressiveness, Sango flinched, while Miroku mentally noted, `Don't mess with the new Kagome.'

They all eventually retired into Kaede's hut to eat dinner and rest for the night. Kagome removed her twin katanas and rested in the far corner, all senses still dangerously alert. She felt another presence outside the hut and silently stepped outside. She surveyed the area and concluded that it was Bankotsu who had come to see her, reasons still unknown to her.

"Bankotsu… Why did you come again?" Kagome's voice was as cold as ever, her eyes searched the surrounding area for the cerulean eyed mercenary. Bankotsu sighed and revealed himself.

"Caught again I guess." He said sheepishly. Kagome looked over at him and searched his eyes. "I didn't know you were here, I was just passing by." He replied casually, trying to dust off his feelings for her.

"Are you sure? I'd be happy to talk to you if you asked me to." Her voice once again warming a bit, but her usual smile did not appear. `Why do I act so _soft_ around him?! Being a big softie is what led to my new form. 'She thought to herself.

Bankotsu looked through her crimson eyes, seeing an inner conflict. He nodded and sighed. "Yes, I just wanted to talk."

"About what?" She said, snapping out of her conflicting thoughts. She really wondered what a mercenary possibly would want to talk about with his enemy's former friend.

"About… er… How do I put this? Uhh… Are you still traveling with Inuyasha?" Kagome shook her head no.

"Why would I continue to travel with that bastard when he already has a mate and has forgotten me? I would rather aid the enemy than continue to live in Kikyo's shadow, even though I can easily kill her again." Kagome growled.

"Oh really? How would you like to join the Band of Seven? We could use another fighter, considering Mukotsu, Ginkotsu and Kyokotsu are all gone for good. I swear we will treat you better than the bastard Inutrasha. Jakotsu might even have a friend who might be willing to talk about boys with him." Bankotsu said.  
Kagome could feel the honesty of his words, and even considered excepting.

"I will consider your proposal; give me a week to think about it. We will meet by the God tree deeper in the forest in the eastward direction. Bankotsu gave her a simple nod and bounded off to meet up with his brothers.

XxXxX

The next day, Inuyasha found Kagome sleeping in a tree, alert, but lay gracefully on the branches. She felt his aura and turned to see him. He was still the same old Inuyasha that she remembered. But her broke her heart and she couldn't let that slide and so she gave him a cold glare.

Inuyasha stood there, gazing at the new Kagome. Noting how she didn't greet him like she normally would have, Inuyasha gave her a questioning look.

"Kagome? Is that you? What happened to you? You look like a murderer! How come you didn't come to see me?" Inuyasha asked.

Kagome jumped off the tree and stood in front of Inuyasha. "Look at me Inuyasha. Look at what you've done to me! You and that bitch Kikyo must have been living pretty happy lives together without me around to ruin it right? You probably forgot all about me!" Kagome hissed. Inuyasha winced at her tone of voice.

"Don't call her a bitch! She's my mate! I'm glad I chose Kikyo over you. You're too emotional and weak for your own good!" Inuyasha huffed. Big mistake. Kagome pinned him to a nearby tree by his throat before he even had time to react.

"Listen here you bastard. I am over you and your whore. And I am much stronger than Kikyo could ever pray to be. So if you wish to keep that mouth I suggest you shut it, before I rip it clean off your face. I am not the love-sick fool I once was. I am not the soft push-over you took advantage of a year ago."Kagome whispered into his ear. Her voice filled with hate and bloodlust.

"What are you doing?! Let go of me!" Inuyasha shouted. Her grip on his throat tightened.

"Don't underestimate me. I won't hold back just because you used to be my friend."

"What do you mean? Are you saying we're not friends anymore?!"

"You've never treated me like a friend, more like a tool. After you mated with Kikyo and Naraku was destroyed, you tossed me aside and forgot me. You didn't even come after me when I know you found out I left. If I held any value in your heart, you would have at least try to find me. You just completely disregarded me and now that I'm back you want me to act like nothing happened?! Is that what friends do? I don't think so!" Kagome hissed.

She released his neck and silently walked away, not even sparing a glance at the bewildered Inuyasha, who laid shocked on the ground. His heart ached; he wanted nothing more than to be by her side. She didn't know the complete story about his relationship with Kikyo.

`What happened to you, Kagome?'

XxXxX

The days flew by and soon it was time for Kagome to share her decision with Bankotsu. She arrived in the clearing, greeted by an anxious Bankotsu.

"I have decided to come with you, but I want to let my friends know I'm leaving them for good, without actually saying goodbye." Kagome said softly.

"You mean like convincing them you're dead?" Bankotsu asked.

"Exactly. I don't want them to expect me to come back." Kagome stated. Bankotsu understood why. Her friends obviously wouldn't approve of her joining the Band of Seven, and would fight to get her back.

"I think I can set up a proper diversion, but we need the other guys to help us out." Bankotsu said calmly while urging her to follow. Kagome nodded and walked with him. Inside, Bankotsu was jumping for joy, but on the outside, he kept his cool face on.

They arrived at the hideout and told the others of their plan. The others were shocked that the girl that once traveled with Inuyasha wasn't the least bit frightened of them, but even more surprised by the fact that she would be joining them.

Jakotsu obviously objected at first, but eventually warmed up to the plan. Everyone could tell he only agreed because he could see Inuyasha again, not knowing he was now a human. Kagome shook her head, knowing he would be disappointed. Bankotsu was just happy she was with their group.

`I'll tell her after the act.' He thought, smiling to himself.

**AN: Okay so once again, if you like it, review!**


	3. Fake Attack

**Real quick, I want to clear up something real. Yes, this is Xiao Hui Lang's story, 'Melting a Frozen Heart'. But if you paid attention to her story, you would notice that she gave up her story. So I am one of the people that took it over. For the first 10 chapters, it will be her writings, but after that, it will be my own.  
****So please, don't tell me that it's her story, cause I know. **

**Also, I decided to keep Inuyasha a half-demon.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.**

"Hey have you seen Kagome today Miroku? I haven't seen her since yesterday." Sango asked anxiously, even though she knew her friend is more than capable of protecting herself.

"She came by this morning saying she was going to go training by the Bone Eater's well. Why do you ask?" Miroku replied.

"I made lunch earlier and thought she might want some." Sango said, holding up a small bag. Miroku nodded and let her go.

Sango happily walked to the well, not expecting anything bad to happen.  
Boy, has she got another thing coming.

She walked for another 10 minutes and could see the well through the trees, and there beside the well, was Kagome, gracefully swinging around her twin katanas. She looked more like she was dancing and Sango stood there, admiring her beauty and skills. Jumped and spun around in the air while flipping her katanas, she landed elegantly and smirked.

Then, seemingly out of nowhere, the Band of Seven appeared and tackled Kagome.  
Sango gasped and stood there, feeling helpless.  
Bankotsu smirked at her and swung Banryu at her, she easily dodged and slashed at his haori. Bankotsu leapt out of the way while Jakotsu swung jakotsutou at her, aiming for her back, she turned around just in time and blocked his snake-like attack by locking her twin katanas around the multiple blades. Renkotsu took this chance and fired his cannon at her, sending smoke and dust into the air. Sango couldn't see anything else until the smoke cleared, revealing no evidence of the attack, except for Kagome's two broken blades and a large blood stain on the ground. The grip on Kagome's meal was lost and Sango fell to her knees, sobbing.

XxXxX

The group waited patiently for one her Kagome's friends showed up. Kagome just leaned against the edge of the well, while the Shichinintai lazed around in the trees. Kagome felt Sango's aura and signaled the others to get ready. She practiced some of her moves when she felt Sango get closer. Bankotsu was mesmerized by her elegance with her swords and almost forgot why they were doing this in the first place. When she was sure Sango was watching, she jumped up and gave the signal to attack. They immediately jumped into action.

Bankotsu was the first up. He made himself smile like he actually wanted to kill her and lunged at her. Their blades collided, sending an array of sparks into the air. Kagome looked at him regretfully and slashed at his haori. He leapt out of way and let Jakotsu take the lead. While they spared, He signaled Renkotsu to ready the canon. When Kagome had locked her blades with jakotsutou, Renkotsu fired his canon, purposely missing Kagome and Jakotsu. Smoke arose, blocking Sango's view. Kagome took this chance and tossed her spare blades out of her bag and poured cranberry juice on the soil near them. She then sped off with the others.

`I'm sorry Sango... It had to be done...' She thought sadly.

XxXxX

Sango sobbed as she gathered Kagome's blades, wrapping them up in the folds of her own kimono. She had witnessed her best friend's death and felt alone. She had lost yet another loved one, and all she could do was watch.

She ran back to Kaede's village, tears blurring her vision.

"Miroku!" She cried as she leapt into his arms.

"Sango, what happened?!" He cried in shock. She lay stood there, sobbing into his chest.

"K-Kagome's... gone..." she whispered before passing out.

Miroku took a sharp intake of air.  
`Kagome's dead?! What the hell is going on!?' Miroku carried her back to the hut and laid her out on a futon.

"What has happened to Sango?" Kaede asked.

"She passed out, saying something about Kagome dying. I don't know if she just saw something that frightened her or..." Miroku was still in the state of shock.

"Kagome has left us?!" Kaede cried. Miroku shrugged.  
Just then, Sango stirred, revealing Kagome's worn-out blades in the folds of her kimono.

"No..." Miroku whispered.

XxXxX

The Band of Six, arrived at the cave that served as their temporary hideout.

"I'm sorry about your haori Bankotsu... I had to make it look convincing." Kagome smiled sheepishly when she saw how torn up Bankotsu's front was. He smirked.

"S'okay, I've been meaning to clean those anyway." He said while ripping off his haori. Kagome almost blushed at the sight of his bare toned chest. Bankotsu noticed this and smiled.  
`So I'm not the only one thinking along these lines.' He pulled out an extra shirt and pulled it over his head, immediately seeing disappointment in her eyes. He wanted to laugh, but didn't want to risk his life messing with the new Kagome.

**AN: So how do you like it so far? Review and tell me!**


	4. Lies

**Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.**

"Is it true Sango? Is Kagome really gone for good?" Miroku asked. Sango nodded her head, her vision still blurred from her tears.

"I was walking towards the well, and I saw Kagome training. Then, the Band of Seven showed up. They challenged her, and she fought back, but it wasn't enough…" She choked on her own tears at the memory.  
"She was busy battling Jakotsu, and Renkotsu fired his canon at her. When the smoke cleared, there was no sign of them. Just Kagome's worn out blades and a huge blood stain on the ground." Sango couldn't hold it in anymore. She fell over and sobbed like a broken piece of quivering flesh.

Miroku did his best to comfort her, but it was no use. He too had tears cascading down his cheeks.  
"Come on Sango, please calm down. She's in a better place now, she is at peace. She has suffered long enough with Inuyasha while she was alive. Don't let her suffer while she rests."

Inuyasha walked into the hut. His shining white hair flowed behind him. Outside he had smelt the salt of tears so he came to investigate. He found Sango and Miroku crying and Kaede looking heartbroken.  
"What's the matter now? Kagome doesn't need us anymore. She can fend for herself now." Sango just sobbed harder. Miroku smacked him across the face leaving the half-demon shocked and confused.

"You idiot! This is your fault! It's your fault Kagome's dead!" Miroku shouted. His mournful expression tightened with fury. Inuyasha stepped back, rubbing the forming bruise on his face. `Huh?'

"What do you mean Kagome's dead?!" Inuyasha asked quietly. Miroku was shaking, with anger and depression practically radiating from his body.

"Exactly that! Kagome's gone! Dead! You drove her away! It's your fault she became dark and cold! It's your fault she believed she was strong enough to take on the Band of Seven on her own!" Miroku shouted, tears still pouring from his eyes.

"What's going on?! When did this happen?!" Inuyasha shouted back. Sango finally found her voice and told her story again. Her voice still quivering with from the power of her sobs. Inuyasha was shocked.

"You mean to tell me that you just stood there while Kagome was fighting off the Band of Seven?! Why didn't you help her?!" Inuyasha was close to tears too. The one he held closest to his heart was gone forever, and there was nothing he could have done to help.

"Don't blame this on me Inuyasha! You're the one who drove her away a year ago! You're the reason why she became so dangerous and unfriendly! If you had told her you chose her the day before she vanished, she might still be here with us! But no! You wanted that clay bitch!" Sango yelled, her voice still hoarse.

"You don't know why I chose Kikyo so you have no right to blame me! I was trying to protect her!" Inuyasha shouted back. The others were very confused. "Kikyo threatened to kill Kagome if I didn't mate with her. I never wanted it, but for Kagome's sake, I did it. I would rather have had her hate me then to have her killed by Kikyo."

Sango stopped sobbing, but her tears still fell. "But either way, you couldn't save her from what you said you'd protect her from." She whispered, just loud enough for him to hear with his human ears.

XxXxX

Kagome walked outside, thinking of why she had agreed so quickly to Bankotsu's deal. `Could it have been Inuyasha's betrayal? Is that why I came with them?' Bankotsu came out and saw her thoughtful expression.

"Hey, what's up?" He said casually. She looked up at him and blushed, remembering how she had reacted to the sight of his bare chest. He smirked.

"What do you want?" She said while looking away. She didn't want to show any signs of weakness or affection, especially in front of him. She didn't know why she had reacted that way to him. `Why am I acting this way? I barely know him, yet I blush at the sight of him! What's wrong with me?!'

Bankotsu smiled. "I just wanted to get away from Jakotsu for a while. The idiot is still fussing over the fact that Inuyasha didn't show up."

"I HEARD THAT ANIKI! YOU'RE SO MEAN SOME TIMES YOU KNOW!!" Jakotsu yelled from inside the cave. Bankotsu snickered.

"And I also figured that since you are now part of this group, I'd have to get to know you better." Bankotsu said. Kagome nodded. "So why are you so dark and dangerous now? Before you were a happy perky person, now you're um, more… evil looking with the red hair and crimson eyes."

Kagome sighed. "Well, Inuyasha and I were pretty close friends, and I soon found myself in love with him." Her fists clenched together in anger. "Then he decided he wanted to mate with that clay bitch, Kikyo. They were in love before I even showed up here in the feudal era. (You see I came from the future 500 years from now; I was brought here by accident.) I went back to my time and trained certain that I could excel the bitch's meager skills. During that time, my heart became frozen with hate and anger." Bankotsu nodded as he took in what she was telling him.

"Are you over him?" Bankotsu asked with a hint of hope. Kagome took notice of this and nodded.

"Hai, I am." She saw relief and happiness in his eyes. She almost smiled at how cute he was acting.

`Whoa, did I just think that was cute?!'

"So why are you so relieved that I'm over the back-stabbing bastard?" she asked slyly. Bankotsu stiffened a bit.

`WHAT DO I SAY?! WHAT DO I SAY?!'

"Er… because… I didn't want you to feel like we forced you to join us and leave your friends behind."

`Yes! That's brilliant!'

Kagome nodded.

"Whatever. I couldn't care less for that bastard." She said as she leaned against a tree.

"Aniki! Imouto! Dinners' ready!" Suikotsu yelled. They both got up and walked inside.

XxXxX

Sango led the rest to the well. Inuyasha ran ahead and skidded to a stop at the sight of the giant blood stain. He sank down to his knees, a single tear escaping his amber eyes.

"It's true then. Kagome's gone for good, isn't she?" He whispered. His friends almost felt bad for him, He betrayed Kagome to protect her from death, but his betraying her led her to her "death". Ironic isn't it?

He dug up the "blood stained" soil and held some in his hands. He cried silently for a minute, and then noticed something strange about the soil. The color wasn't deep enough and it wasn't as thick as it should have been. With his keen sense of smell, he could tell that blood wasn't supposed to smell fruity.  
`Could this mean that Kagome could still be alive? If so, why would she vanish with the Band of Seven and leave her katanas behind?'

Sango and Miroku noticed his bewilderment. "What's wrong?"

"This soil, it's not blood stained." Inuyasha answered.

"What?! Are you blind?! It's red and-"

"Fruity." Inuyasha interrupted. Sango looked at him as if he had lost his mind.

"You heard me. Red and fruity. The color is still red. It should have turned brown by now. And plus, blood isn't supposed to smell fruity. See for yourself." He held up the dirt in his hands for them to smell.

"You're right! This isn't blood! This is the cranberry juice Kagome always used to bring!" Miroku cried. Sango's eyes widened.

"But, it can't be! I saw the explosion!" Sango shrieked.

'Why would Kagome fake her own death?! What the hell is going on here?!'

**AN: Review please!**


	5. Kikyo's Visit

**IM SOOOOOOOO SORRY ABOUT THE LONG WAIT!!! . **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha**

As time passed, Kagome learned to tolerate the very er... unique members of the Band of Seven; Jakotsu with his whining about women, Suikotsu with his split personality, Renkotsu with his suspicious actions, and Bankotsu with his cockiness. Though she accepted them, she felt most comfortable around Bankotsu for some unknown reason. They also learned to tolerate her, save Jakotsu, who just wouldn't accept her as his Imouto. She somehow learned to live with that. As she became more comfortable with them, her old smile would appear every now and then, but she still kept the cold mask on.

One day, Bankotsu decided to step out of the hide-out to think a bit in peace. Bankotsu seriously wanted to spend more alone time with Kagome, even if she might attack him if he did anything funny. He was still magnetically attracted to her. He wanted to see her warm smile again, hear her beautiful laughter. He wanted to rip Inuyasha to shreds for turning her into someone so cold, but he also wanted to thank him for doing what he did because she willingly became part of the Band of Seven.

Kagome was returning from the nearby hot spring and caught Bankotsu's thoughtfulness. She almost giggled at the show of emotions that played on his tanned face. One second he was serious, the next he was dreamy, then he started grinning like an idiot. She decided to have some fun and snuck up on him. She was careful to be as silent as possible, then she pounced. Poor Bankotsu never saw it coming.

"What the hell?!" Bankotsu shouted when he felt something light and soft push him to the ground, he landed on the back of his head. Kagome snickered. Bankotsu fake glared at her. "Good afternoon to you too."

Then he noticed their current position and blushed. A bit too intimate for Bankotsu to handle.

Kagome hopped off him and took a good look at him. There were many leaves sticking out of his hair like a hat, and dirt on both his cheeks. Behind his head, was a growing red bump. She broke out laughing when he pouted and asked, "What are you staring at?"

Bankotsu was confused. Kagome was rolling on the floor dying of laughter and nothing had really happened. `Wait, Kagome's LAUGHING!!' He grinned to himself then asked, "What's so funny? Last I checked, you tried to keep on a cool face."

Kagome stopped laughing for a bit then answered. "Take a look," she said as she pointed to the nearby river.

He crawled over to the riverside. He took a look at his reflection and started laughing with her. How good it was for him to hear her laughter. The one thing he missed about her was finally heard.

XxXxX

"Why the hell would Kagome fake her own death?!" Inuyasha cried. The other two shrugged but let out a small sigh of relief, knowing that there was a possibility that Kagome was alive. Kikyo took this chance to show up.

"Inuyasha, where have you been? I was looking all over for you these past two days!" Kikyo snapped. Sango scowled at her and stood to leave, followed closely by Miroku. Kikyo ignored the rude exit and proceeded to Inuyasha. "Well mate? What have you been doing? Are you busy later?" Kikyo asked trying to sound seductive, which really creeped out Inuyasha. He gulped and backed away. Kikyo grabbed his shoulders and forced a kiss on his lips. Inuyasha tried to pry her off, but she was persistent.

"Well, my little puppy is playing hard to get. I like that." She swayed her hips while she walked. Inuyasha was seriously grossed out by now.

"Uhh... Kikyo... Please get away from me." Inuyasha stammered. Kikyo's seductive face became angry. She knew exactly why he was rejecting her sensual approaches.

"Why won't you forget my reincarnation?! Need I remind you she was produced from my soul?! The bitch is gone!" Kikyo yelled. Inuyasha flinched when she called her a bitch.

"You're wrong Kikyo. She is back, and stronger than ever." Inuyasha defended. If Kagome were here, she would have been happy that he was defending her.

"WHAT?!" Kikyo fumed. "I'll show her strong! She's probably just pretending to be strong so you would like her better! That low-life bitch!" She shouted as she stormed off to search for Kagome. Inuyasha would have grinned if he didn't feel so queasy from Kikyo's earlier attempt to seduce him. He knew her search was in vain, but he was satisfied that she actually left him in peace.

Kikyo was fuming, hatred and jealousy filled her to the brim. Kagome was her only competition for Inuyasha's heart, and now that she has returned, Kikyo would have a harder time winning Inuyasha's attention. She hated Kagome for "stealing" her soul, hated her for stealing Inuyasha's heart, but most of all, hated her for thinking she could surpass her skills.

Then suddenly, she felt the presence of several tainted jewel shards and the presence of an incomplete soul. `So Kagome was kidnapped by the Shichinintai. I always knew she was weak.' Kikyo smirked. But to her surprise, Kagome seemed to be one of them. She wasn't bound by ropes, struggling against them, or begging them to set her free. She was actually having a conversation with them, and they talked and laughed with her!

Kagome spotted a white and red figure in the distance and concluded that it was Kikyo. She froze and let loose a feral growl. The others noticed this and asked what was wrong. Kikyo slowly made her approach.

"Well, well, well, look who we have here. The amateur miko who dared to come back to beg for Inuyasha's heart." Kikyo snickered.  
Bankotsu growled at the fact the Kagome might still like Inuyasha, but her actions told him otherwise. Her whipped out her katanas and lunged at Kikyo. Suikotsu held her back and she struggled.

"Suikotsu, let go of me!!" Kagome roared. At this point, even Bankotsu was impressed at her new aggressiveness.

"It's okay, we'll handle this." Bankotsu said calmly.

"No! This is my battle! I'm sick of always being left out of the fight!"Kagome growled.

"You little bitch, you try to steal Inuyasha's heart, but you failed miserably and got yourself kidnapped by the Band of Seven. Pathetic. I'm ashamed to call you my reincarnation." Kikyo taunted. Kagome struggled so hard that Suikotsu finally released her and she pinned Kikyo to a tree by her throat before anyone had time to react.

"Listen here you bitch, and listen well. I am over that bastard Inuyasha. I have someone new in his place. If I ever see your disgusting face again, be sure that you will not live to see another day. You will die slowly at my hand if your bitchy ass gets anywhere near us, and I will not make it painless. Consider this your first and final warning. Now get out of my sight." Kagome's grip on her throat tightened considerably, and Kikyo was clawing at the hand that could have killed her. Kagome released her neck and gave her a good hard kick; shot her a disgusted look that silently walked off, leaving Kikyo and Band of Seven in amazement and shock.

Kagome could sense Kikyo's growing fear and smirked. "You're still here Kinky-ho? I thought I made myself clear." Kagome said with such silkiness, it even sent shivers up Bankotsu's spine. Imagine how Kikyo felt.

If there was ever a time Kikyo felt close to fainting, it was now. She was so frightened and shocked, she was passed out at the base of the tree. When she woke, there was no sign that Kagome and the Band of Seven where even there, but when she turned, there was a dagger pinning a note to the tree. It read:

_Don't bother trying to find us again. If I find out that you or Inuyasha have tried to seek me out, you might as well prepare your own grave in advance… _

_Love, Kagome_

Kikyo felt a feeling she never felt before, the urge to cry. She had never felt so vulnerable, especially towards Kagome. Not only was she afraid, but she regretted taunting and insulting her. Now she had the new member of the Band of Seven after her and she was scared out of her mind. `What happened to the old, kind, weaker Kagome? She was my main target. Now there's a cold hard shell and the Band of Seven protecting her.'

She let out a whimper and ran back to the village.

**AN: Only 5 more chapters till I get to write!**


	6. Confession

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.**

"Wow Kagome, I didn't know you had it in you." Bankotsu laughed. Kagome rolled her eyes.

"I just don't like the bitch just assuming things. `_Oh, _how _dare_ you come back to _beg _for Inuyasha's _heart_. He belongs to _me. _Go _away!_'" She said using a very crappy imitation voice, causing the others to break out laughing. "You know how pathetic that is? She thinks she's so _powerful. _She's just lucky I didn't destroy the thing she calls a `body'." She rambled. Jakotsu laughed at this.

"You know Kagome, you're not as bad as I thought you were. Wait, you said you're over Inuyasha! Does that mean I can have him?"

Kagome smirked. "Knock yourself out Jakotsu. But the only thing you have to worry about is Kinky-hoe." Jakotsu started dancing around, shouting: "Yay! He's all mine! I wonder if he's any good in bed."

"Uh, yea. Sure… Whatever."

XxXxX

"She did WHAT?!" Inuyasha shouted. Kikyo had explained everything about her meeting with the Band of Seven to the rest of the group. Miroku and Sango were happy and afraid of what they had heard. It's about time someone stood up to Kikyo, but why _join_ the Band of Seven? Was it all some plan to get back at Inuyasha, or was she really joining the very evil they once fought against?

"I don't understand, why would she join them?! Those bastards don't do anything but kill innocent people!! And she is an innocent person!" Inuyasha exclaimed. Miroku and Sango rolled their eyes. How could someone be so ignorant and dense?

"Do we really have to explain that to you?" Sango asked with her arms crossed. Inuyasha just looked at her dumbly. She sighed and continued. "Didn't you notice how dark and hostile she had become? When she first stepped into the hut, I thought she was a ninja or a shadow demon because her aura was so ominous."

"She also mentioned something about wanting `chat' with you. When `chatting' includes licking _your_ blood off her sword, it's not really a `chat' is it? She wanted blood! She wanted death! She is not the Kagome we once knew!" Miroku stressed. "And if you can't see how much she's changed, than scrape that crud outta your eyes because she is out there trying to kill you!"

"B-but, why does she want to kill me? I did what I did to protect her!" Inuyasha cried.

"But she doesn't know that! She thinks you really love that clay pot over there. You could have killed her yourself! She's not here anymore anyway!" Sango shouted.

"Uh, excuse me; I _am right here _in the room with you, you know!" Kikyo said pompously.

"Oh, shut up!"

"NO, you shut up! I have had enough with people calling me names just because I'm dead! I can easily overpower you or the monk or even the Band of Seven whore!"Kikyo fumed. "She is out there killing people! I have never killed anyone! I am above her!"

"No, you are not Lady Kikyo. She might be taking lives, we don't know for sure. But you use the souls of dead women before they have the chance to go to hell or heaven. That is much worse, lady Kikyo." Miroku rambled on as calmly as he could muster. And as if on cue, Kikyo's soul collectors came into the hut and dropped off the souls that kept her alive. Kikyo huffed and marched out, with her souls collectors close by.

"Inuyasha, why don't you just get rid of her?! We are sick and tired of her snobby attitude! She thinks she rules the place! And it's her fault Kagome's hunting you down with the Band of Seven!" Shippo shouted. The others jumped, having forgotten he had returned with Kirara just before Kikyo did. Kirara mewed in agreement. Shippo's once shining, playful emerald eyes were now sad and hard. Those green orbs glared at Inuyasha, knowing it was the half-demon's fault he had lost yet another mother.

"He's right Inuyasha. You should just ditch her." Miroku agreed. The rest nodded. Inuyasha just sat there, not knowing what to do about Kikyo.

"Well, what should I do?"

XxXxX

The Band of Seven were resting under a large tree, all of them were exhausted after walking all day. Bankotsu yawned and stretched.

"I think we should camp here for the night." He sighed. Mumbles of "Okay", "Fine", and "Whatever" were heard. Suikotsu stood up and walked towards the woods.

"I'm gonna go look for firewood." Bankotsu nodded and stood up as well.

"I'm gonna get water."

"I'll go look for a hot spring or something, you guys reek!" she snickered. Bankotsu turned around.

"You're no better." He smirked. Kagome sniffed herself. "Ugh, your right. Come on Jakotsu" Jakotsu stood up and followed her without complaint.

"I guess I'm hunting tonight." Renkotsu sighed.

They all returned pretty much at the same time. Kagome and Jakotsu had found a large hot spring, which was conveniently divided into two by several boulders. Bankotsu returned with four buckets of water, Suikotsu had collected enough firewood to last three days, and Renkotsu had caught three rabbits, a boar, and a small stag.

"Okay Renkotsu hand the boar to me, I'm gonna make something a little different for you guys this time." Renkotsu shrugged and tossed the boar her way. After cleaning and skinning the boar, she cut the meat into little pieces and brought out five cups of ramen from her bag. The others watched with interest as she began to boil water and cook the noodles. She dumped the little pieces of meat into the boiling water and poured the powder flavoring into the mixture. To the, it looked strange at first, but by the time it was done, the four men were almost drooling, well two men because Bankotsu and Jakotsu _were_ drooling and begging the fire to cook faster. Kagome almost giggled at the sight of this.

She separated the food into five equal shares and handed a cup to each man. The classic ramen look was plastered on all their faces and they immediately started to wolf the stuff down.

Kagome snickered. "Slow down guys! Your gunna get a gut ache if you eat too fast!"

Suikotsu pulled his head out of his cup. "Who's the doctor here? Oh right, me! "And his attention drifted back to the half finished cup of noodles. After they had all finished, Kagome carefully studied their faces. Each one's face was covered in soup, noodles and meat bits. She thought that less than half of the actual cup ended up in their stomachs, and the rest ended up on them. Kagome broke out laughing.

"What are you laughing at?!" Bankotsu demanded playfully. Kagome handed them her mirror and looked at them. They all blushed, but cracked up when they saw the others face.

"Come on guys, this is one more reason why you need to bathe." Kagome said, laughter still threatening to break out. They all nodded and headed for the hot spring. Kagome brought her shampoo and towels and followed right after.

The guys bathed on one side and Kagome on the other. After Kagome was done with her shampoo, she threw the bottle over the boulder to the guys. A soft thump was heard on the other side followed by fits of laughter.

"Kagome!" Bankotsu whined while rubbing his head. He looked over the boulder, only to receive a shower of rocks.

"Hentai." Kagome huffed. The others laughed at Bankotsu's misery while he just sat on a rock with his arms crossed and a small pout on his face.

After bathing, the group got their sleeping bags ready. Jakotsu was the first to conk out; his snoring could have been heard for miles. Annoyed, Renkotsu tied his bandana over Jakotsu's mouth to try to cover the irritating noise. It didn't work. In fact, it made it worse because Jakotsu was making more noises because he couldn't breathe as well. Bankotsu growled and threatened to shove Banryu into his mouth, but Kagome calmed him down. She woke up Jakotsu and made him swallow a pill. After he fell asleep again, much to everyone's relief, he didn't snore. Suikotsu was the next to fall asleep and was followed by Renkotsu.

Bankotsu and Kagome were the only ones awake. Kagome was in her sleeping bag staring at the sky. Bankotsu was sitting on a tree branch staring at Kagome.

Kagome looked over at him at caught he's eyes roaming over her. She blushed and glared.

"What are you looking at?" She whispered. Bankotsu face turned a healthy shade of crimson and he looked away.

"Nothing."

"Liar."

"Nosy."

"Just tell me what's up." Kagome sighed. Bankotsu slid off the branch and walked to his sleeping bag.

"I'll tell you later."

"No, tell me now!"

"Fine! J-just don't tell anyone."Kagome nodded and scooted closer to him. He blushed at the lack of space between them, but luckily the darkness of the night hid it from Kagome's curious eyes.

"W-well, there's this girl, that I l-like a lot, and uh… well I want to know if she feels the same. I really doubt it, but I'm too scared to ask."Bankotsu said nervously. He expected her to burst out laughing at his confession, but her ringing laughter never came.

Kagome was shocked. So behind that tough shell of a mercenary was an actual human, with actual feelings! And she couldn't believe he was actually admitting this to _her_.

"Well, you should just tell her how you really feel. Don't be afraid of a rejection, more than half of the guys that admit their feelings to the girls they like end up with girlfriends. Besides, any girl would love to date you. Just tell her you like her." She said with a small, rare smile.

"I just did."

**AN: Review!**


	7. Predator and Prey

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.**

_I just did…_

_I_

_Just_

_Did…_

Those three little words kept repeating themselves in Kagome's head. She sat there staring at him; her eyes wide and her mouth agape. Her crimson orbs searched his sapphire ones for any hint of deception, but found none. She didn't know how to react. Here, in front of her, sat the leader of the Shichinintai, confessing his feelings for her!

Bankotsu looked away, taking her silence as a rejection. He stood up and began to walk away. Kagome finally came to her senses and ran after him.

"Bankotsu! Wait!"  
He turned only to receive a mouthful of red tipped ebony hair. Kagome wrapped her arms around him, with tears in her eyes.  
"Don't say something like that then walk away!"  
Bankotsu's eyes widened. `Does this mean I still have a chance?'  
He slowly wrapped his arms around her waist, allowing her to cry on his shoulder.

"Don't leave me alone like Inuyasha did. He told me he loved me, but continuously disappeared with… **her**. I don't want you to do the same…" She whispered quietly, shining tears silently flowed from her eyes.

Bankotsu was speechless. He thought he had been rejected, but… exactly what was she saying? Was she saying she wanted to be with him? Or was she begging him not to abandon her like the mutt did? His mind whirled with questions, but knew better than to ask them. It'd just too awkward. Just then, Kagome looked up, her crimson eyes stared at his tan face. Both were caught in a trance and leaned closer together, until their lips met. The kiss felt so natural, almost as if it was meant to be. But it ended to soon, they both pulled away and blushed when they realized what just happened.

Kagome looked up at his angular face. "I'm not rejecting you, I just need sometime. I'm not ready to be in a relationship yet, not after what happened with Inuyasha. When I come around, we might be able to make it work. Just wait for me, okay?"

Bankotsu nodded but refused to let her go. "I'll wait, but don't make me wait too long alright? There are plenty of other women who would die for me to look at them like I do to you." He chuckled, trying to bring up the mood.  
She lightly slapped his chest and smiled: something she had been trying to do more and more often lately. They held each other for a little longer and bade the other good night.

XxXxX

"You're sure this'll work?" Inuyasha asked unsure. Miroku shrugged.

"I don't know, but being obnoxious can usually get a woman off your back, I've never tried it before."

Sango growled. "Why don't you just kill the bitch Inuyasha?!" Inuyasha sighed.

"I just don't have the guts to do that. She _was_ my first love. Even if she's a whoring bitch, she still carries some value in my heart."

"That value should have disappeared by now. I mean she's tried to kill Kagome multiple times, stole _half her soul_, attempted to drag you down to hell with her, then threatened to kill Kagome if you didn't love her!" Sango shrieked. The others all sent stern glares his way. His ears went flat against his head.  
Then a certain memory replayed once again in his head. The same memory that had tainted his dreams for so long...

_**Flashback**_

"_Kikyo!" Inuyasha cried. She stood still in the clearing, a jealous glare plastered on her face._

"_What's wrong?"_

"_I've noticed that you have become more attached to the other girl. May I ask why?" She said in a monotone voice with hint of bitterness. Inuyasha didn't know how to respond. It was true that he was beginning to think of Kagome in more than just a friend, but how did Kikyo know?_

"_It's none of your business as to who I can or can't like." He huffed in defense. The fire in her in dead clay eyes grew with her fury._

"_So it's true! You love her! You're only supposed to love me! Not my bitch of a copy! What do you see in her anyway?! She cannot fight, she cannot pleasure you like I can, she cannot do __anything__like I can! She's just an attention seeking whore!" She shrieked._

"_If she's the copy, than why are __**you **__made of clay while __**she's **__alive?!" He growled. He was beginning to get irritated. He turned to leave, but found that he could not move._

"_What the hell?! Kikyo let me go! I have no desire to see you right now. People who speak so lowly of Kagome must have a death wish." he seethed. Kikyo's eyes narrowed._

"_If you leave me, the bitch dies." She whispered. Her voice dripping with venom. Inuyasha growled._

"…"

"_That's what I thought. You value her life, then stay with me. If you don't I'll kill her myself. Make your choice."_

"_Fine, just don't touch her."_

"_Kiss me."_

"_What?!"_

"_KISS ME"_

_Inuyasha felt his body move towards her. His eyes widened and let out a feral growl. His control of his body began slipping away._

"_Dammit! I… swear Kikyo…! When I… finally gain control… over my body…there'll be… hell to pay…!" He shouted between gasps. His possessed hands held on to Kikyo's slender form, and he pressed his lips on her cold ones. He heard a small gasp and could smell the salty tears of the girl he loved. He heard the bushes rustle and fading footsteps. Although unnoticed by either girl, hot tears were sliding down his face, and his broken heart aching…_

_**End Flashback**_

"What if doesn't work? Kikyo is rather clingy and doesn't care about what I do or say to her as long as it doesn't relate to Kagome. And if it does, she does the same thing she did to me the night Kagome ran away. That weird spell thing is hard to fight against!" Inuyasha cried.

"It's worth a shot isn't it? If not, then just go find Kagome and apologize to her." Miroku suggested. Inuyasha still didn't agree.

"Kagome is out there plotting against me! She'll kill me if I get anywhere near her! Besides… she told me it was over between us, that the last ties were cut on the night she left for home. I've got no chance."  
Inuyasha sulked; his ears sadly lacked their usual perkiness upon his head. Even his proud amber eyes dimmed as he spoke.

"If you won't take a chance, its gonna be impossible between you and Kagome. If you want her, you _have_ try for her!" Sango exclaimed.  
Inuyasha looked up, with a renewed sense of determination.

"Your right, I'm the predator and she's my prey. I'm gonna find her and bring her back!"

**AN: Another chapter! Only 3 more to go till I get to write! Im so excited!!**


	8. Change in the Band of Seven

**Soooooo sorry about the long wait! Ive just been reeeeeeaaaally busy with finals. But im almost done and then only a month of school left. I cant wait!**

**Disclaimer: -sigh- Don't own Inuyasha characters. There.**

Inuyasha was determined to find Kagome and tell her what really happened that night. Though, without Kagome's new scent, it proved to be rather difficult. The others agreed to help whenever they could all escape Kikyo. The first to help was Miroku… but he got distracted by the sound of giggling women coming from the nearby hot spring. Inuyasha didn't even bother to drag him away; Sango took care of him later on.

Next was Shippo. He had long since forgotten what Kagome smelled like. Not being around to see your adoptive mother after a year's separation does that to you. Of course Inuyasha wasn't happy, but Shippo quickly calmed him down when he suggested going somewhere they last saw her. Inuyasha immediately shot up and sped towards the clearing where he had met her for the first time since her departure.

Shippo sniffed around the clearing, only to find very slight traces of her scent. Shippo was thankful that she was still using the same shampoo, otherwise he wouldn't be able to detect anything. His face was literally stuck to the ground like a dog, trying to follow the very weak signs of Kagome's presence.

Inuyasha was very impatient and rushed. He wanted to find her as soon as possible. Hanging around a band of killers, male killers, worried him greatly. He wasn't too concerned that Kagome would fall for any of them; he feared that they would fall for her. Even with her new "deathly" personality, she was still probably the most beautiful young woman in the eyes of all unmarried men; the men in the Shichinintai were no exceptions by any means.

The gay one he didn't have to worry too much about after he had heard about how Inuyasha had hurt Kagome. He was more uneasy about the bald fire-breathing pyromaniac, the freak doctor, and the overly-confident leader, especially the latter. Inuyasha growled. The very thought of Bankotsu loving his Kagome sickened him to no end.

He knew that the Shichinintai's young leader harbored feelings for the girl his heart desired. He wasn't as stupid as the others believed him to be. He knew that every night since Kagome left the Feudal Era; Bankotsu would sit by the well and wait until dawn for the raven-haired priestess to appear. Inuyasha's jaws clenched together at the memory of catching him there, half asleep with the top portion of his corpse body hanging over the side, whispering: "When are you coming back, Kagome?"

"There! Look!" Shippo shouted as he pointed at the edge of a hot spring. It was one of the fluffy pink towels Kagome always brought; thrown over the edge of a rock, obviously left forgotten to dry.

Inuyasha gingerly picked it off its perch, sighing at the softness of the cloth against his calloused fingers. Shippo took notice of the sad, regretful look that graced his face as he stared blankly at the towel. He took in its perfumed fragrance. `It smells like… a small jasmine flower covered in dew… It smells so much like Kagome…` Inuyasha thought. Ever since he realized that Kagome was alive and well, Inuyasha became more poetic in the way he thought. He was no longer the rough ill-tempered jerk he was before. He was more patient and gentle, but still every bit as demanding and irritable as he will ever be.

"I can smell her now. Thanks Shippo." He said quietly. Shippo nodded sadly and started back towards the camp.

Inuyasha started bounding towards Kagome's scent when all of a sudden something weird hit his nose. He started coughing and choking. It smelled like the Band of Seven covered in Kagome's shampoo; like flowers, rain, ashes, and musky body odor. Inuyasha cringed as he took another breath. He took a few more small breaths and got used to the stench. He coughed once again and then started bounding toward the smell again.

XxXxX

Jakotsu, Renkotsu and Suikotsu all noticed something strange going on between Kagome and their leader, something kind of like a comfortable tension with a tinge of awkwardness. Jakotsu knew exactly what it was and would burst out giggling whenever he would spot the two blushing when they got too close. Renkotsu would roll his eyes and Suikotsu would just smile slightly.

Every night at dinner, Kagome's pale face would turn tomato red every time Bankotsu sat next to her. Bankotsu would blush every time Kagome would spar with him and accidentally brush up against him. The other three found this quite amusing but a bit disturbing. A girl who normally was deadly efficient in battles with a cool demeanor and a fearless mercenary who has killed hundreds with a single sweep of his sword, both blushing every time they got within four feet of the other.

One day while they were walking, they happened to come across a small village. The men were itching to get into action and the villagers fled at the sight of them, knowing exactly who they were and why they were there.

Suikotsu reverted into twisted murderer mode and menacingly licked his claws, laughing at the terrified faces of the villagers. Renkotsu's face bore a maniacal grin as his prepared his canons. Jakotsu was eyeing the young men, who all felt extremely uncomfortable under his gaze. Bankotsu, being the boldest, seized a small child and threatened the village saying something along the lines of: "give us all the sake and gold you have, or your village will be reduced to nothing but ashes" or something like that. Kagome's eyes narrowed as she shook her head with disapproval.

"Guys, leave this village alone." The men put down their weapons with reluctance. "Bankotsu, put the girl down." Bankotsu pouted and but released the child.

"Who put you in charge?" He asked grumpily, having his fun ruined so early into the day. He moodily crossed his arms and glared at her.

She ignored him and stepped forward, trying to calm the villagers down. They all unsurprisingly backed away. The little girl timidly approached her, long black hair bouncing with every step she took. Each slow step and agonizing for the villagers, who each drew a breath every time she got closer to the mysterious young woman.

Kagome's face softened at the terrified look on the child's face. She knelt down and comfortingly patted the girl's hair. She reminded Kagome of the little girl that traveled around with Sesshomaru. What was her name…? Rin?

"Hello little one, what's your name?" She asked with a warm gentle voice, crimson eyes genuinely showing sympathy. A slight smile broke out on her face as she watched the girl try to form the name in her mouth.

"Y-Yu-Yuki." She said quietly. Kagome chuckled softly and took her hands into her own.

"Yuki… Little snow, what a pretty name… "The little girl smiled with her big chocolate eyes shining. Kagome laughed softly and guided the girl back to her weary mother. The mother smiled gratefully and slowly backed away from her.

"Kagome… Why'd you do that for? You totally just ruined the day for all of us!" Jakotsu whined. Kagome rolled her eyes and folded her arms behind her head as she walked away.

"Sorry boys. How 'bout I make it up to you guys at dinner? I'll make ramen." She said in a sing-song voice. She burst out laughing when all the guys looked up excitedly and ran over shouting things like: "All is forgiven!" Bankotsu's pout melted down into a small smile as he saw his men circle around the young woman, apparently very eager to leave the village alone if it meant they could eat their favorite food.

The villagers watched in amazement as the young lady was able to convince the Band of Seven to leave them alone with something called ramen. And the strangest thing was, she was one of them, but didn't want to destroy an innocent village like the others wanted to, she even got the leader to spare one of their youngest. The same little girl approached Kagome again, this time more confident than before.

"E-excuse me pretty lady, what is ramen?" Kagome chuckled at the girl's question and comment.

"Yuki, ramen is a type of noodle that I can cook with just water and powdered flavoring, but I think you would like a lollipop better." Seeing the confused look on her face, she continued, "A lollipop is a type of candy that you can suck off a stick… here" she rummaged through the black hole she called a bag and dug up several lollipops.

Yuki gently took it and stared at it in wonder. She had never seen something so small with so many colors. Kagome helped her peel off the wrapping and handed it to her.

One of the villagers shouted: "She is trying to poison the child!" other cries rang out of the crowd. Kagome stood up and rolled her eyes. She held up the lollipop and stuck it into her mouth.

"See, it's not poison."

"Then why is it so colorful?!"

"The colors represent different flavors; for example, purple is grape, red is strawberry, blue is raspberry, green is apple, pink is watermelon, etc…" She said tiredly. She handed Yuki another one and watched as the child cautiously put stuck the candy into her small mouth. Her eyes widened and she grinned widely.

"This tastes amazing!" she laughed out loud. She quickly put it back in her mouth and soon enough all that was left was the stick. She sighed contently and hugged Kagome, who quickly returned the favor.

"Does anyone else want one?" She offered. Several other children and a few adults approached her and each took on for themselves, each reacted the same way, smiles and laughs. Bankotsu smiled as he watched Kagome interact with the villagers. She had actually opened up for the first time since she had come back from the future. Bankotsu was certain that she would open up to him sooner or later and allow him to say what he had wanted to say ever since she had joined them. `_I love you…_`

Unknown to the group or villagers, there were a certain pair of disappointed amber eyes watching Kagome's every move…

**AN: I cant wait till I start writing! Chapter 8 done! Now only Chapter 9 and 10!**


	9. Unwanted Visits and Immortality

**Hey everyone. We're almost there! Just this one and the next one. I decided im just going to go ahead and get over with so im going to post this one and the next one…TODAY! So…yeah. I'll be writing soon!**

**Disclaimer: -murmurs- I don't own Inuyasha.  
-looks over at the copyright people- Do I REALLY have to keep saying this?**

"I can't believe this, under that hard shell, the old Kagome's still in there."Inuyasha whispered as he watched her tame the Band of Seven and show the villagers the pleasures of the future. He was fairly happy, until he spotted his enemy. His pupils dilated into slits, his lips instinctively curled up into a vicious snarl. Bankotsu kept a protective eye on her, warding off any young men who dared to try to approach her, though she was doing a good job on that on her own. Bankotsu was merely _persuading_ the other men to back off and stay that way.

Inuyasha watched enviously as Kagome approached the younger warrior and smirked at him. Bankotsu's face reddened a bit but he smirked back.

"Now Kagome, I think you owe us something…" Jakotsu said in a sing-song voice. Kagome laughed lightly and walked off into the forest, waving her hand in the air, signaling them to follow. Inuyasha silently leaped through the trees, keeping a safe distance from the group. He watched them walk quietly to their camp, all keeping serious faces intact. They all plopped down by the campfire, looked around carefully then suddenly burst out laughing.

"Oh man! I can't believe they actually fell for it _again_!" Kagome hollered.

"You certainly are suited to be the Band of Seven's ninja. You can pull anything off without breaking a sweat!" Suikotsu added proudly. Bankotsu nodded happily. Inuyasha was confused. What happened?

Kagome waved a finger in the air, forming a glowing red circle in the air, which warped the time and space of the area around it. Her hand straightened out and pulled back, small bags began to fly out of the miniature black hole. With every bag, the group's grins grew broader and wider. Finally, in the middle of the clearing lay a pile of bags, large and small. Kagome waved a finger again and the hole vanished.

"Look at all the stuff I was able to snatch while they were distracted. How could they not notice a gaping black hole that's glowing red?" Kagome stated. Bankotsu hi-fived her while Jakotsu ran up and hugged her.

"Tell me again how you're able to do that?" Renkotsu asked curiously.

Kagome chuckled. "Renkotsu, you will never cease your rapid fire questions about me will you?" At this, Renkotsu blushed and pouted as his brothers snickered from behind. "Anyway, while I was training in the future, I came across an ancient scroll, one written before even this era. I learned how to transform my priestess energy into pure dark magic. Of course, you can't learn it, 'cause you don't harvest the powers of a priestess!"

"Well, we have the power of our jewel shards!" Bankotsu said, indicating the purplish glow in his neck.

"Hey, what happened to the other shards anyway? We haven't seen another one in ages!" Suikotsu pointed out. Kagome smiled deviously.

"Duh, what do you think happened to them?" She said while holding up a near-complete somewhat tainted jewel. "I just need your shards and it'll be complete!" Bankotsu growled.

"You're not doing anything to our jewel shards!" He said threateningly. Kagome rolled her eyes.

"Why would I do that? You guys are like family! And as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted, I need your shards to complete the jewel, right? Once I have the complete jewel, I can wish you guys back to life! You know, as in real, breathing flesh! And I might throw in a life of immortality, but since you guys don't wanna…" she said with a shrug

The men were stunned; they never thought that she would care enough for them to actually use the jewel to bring them back to life. They all pondered what the consequences would be, and remembered why they rebelled against Naraku. They wanted to live forever. Each man looked at the other then at Kagome. Inuyasha was shocked to say the least. Did she just offer them what he thought she did?

"You swear this isn't a trick?" Bankotsu stressed. Kagome looked slightly hurt.

"After all this time, you still don't trust me?" Bankotsu hurriedly shook his head no and prepared to pull out his shard. The others did the same. They all looked at Kagome one last time before pulling out the shards and vanishing into piles of dust. Inuyasha was astonished to see the sad look on Kagome's face as she watched Bankotsu's body reduce into a pile of ash. She went through each pile until she had found the remaining shards. She morphed them all together and smiled slightly at the finally completed jewel.

She held the purplish orb close to her chest and whispered: "I wish Bankotsu, Jakotsu, Suikotsu, Renkotsu were brought back from the dead and all of us were given a life of immortality…" The jewel flashed a bright light and vanished. Kagome's eyes snapped open as a strange pain filled her chest. She fell down to her knees, fighting back tears. The pain that racked her body was so intense; Kagome swore she saw her life flash before her eyes. Soon the pain vanished, and was replaced by a growing power. She never felt so much raw power flow into her body and thought she would be over whelmed. She soon settled down and watched as the rest of her wish took effect, feeling refreshed and empowered. The piles of ash all glowed pink and slowly took form of their corresponding bodies. Jakotsu was brought back first, followed by Renkotsu and Suikotsu. Seeing that Bankotsu's body had not yet finished forming, Kagome began to worry, what if something had gone wrong?

Fortunately, Bankotsu finally came to a stop and fell to his knees. He never felt stronger than he had that moment. His cerulean eyes soon found the crimson ones of his savior and flashed his signature smirk. Jakotsu cheered for the permanent return of the Shichinintai and trapped Kagome in a deadly hug.

"Oh thank you! Thank you! Thank you! I don't think I could ever thank you enough for this!" Jakotsu squealed. Kagome had turned a nice shade of blue and was gasping for air.

"I-I Think- y-you… just did…!"

"Jakotsu release her before you kill her." Suikotsu shouted. Jakotsu pouted and let her go.

"You forget, we're all immortal now. Nothing, including time can kill us."

"And now you see the brilliance of my joke." Suikotsu chuckled as he too went for a hug. Bankotsu and Renkotsu both rolled their eyes but joined in the group hug anyway.

"Now that you're not walking zombies anymore, we can all work on a real robbery." Kagome smirked. "See? Isn't robbing more fun than killing?" This was answered by a series of "Sure…" and "Yeah… whatever you say…"

Inuyasha lay there beyond bewilderment. The "old Kagome" he had seen at the village was merely an act! And to steal from them no less! She had brought back the most notorious bands of mercenaries in history of Japan and she didn't even feel bad! She was no longer that sweet gentle girl he had met that day at the base of the God tree. No, she was a bandit, a thief, a person that no longer had morals. _And it was his fault. _He fell to his knees, crushing a few twigs as he landed. He heard alarmed voices, but he didn't care. All he that his mind would process was the fact that he had indeed killed his loving Kagome. That sweet innocent girl was gone, forever…

XxXxX

"Did you hear that?!"

"What was it?!"

"Will you guys just shut up?! Let me listen!" Kagome hissed. They all immediately quieted down. Her analyzing crimson eyes scanned the surrounding foliage. She closed her eyes as she knelt down, pressing her hand into the ground. She felt the vibrations in the dirt, with each second that passed a picture slowly began to take shape in her mind: _Inuyasha_!

Her eyes snapped open as she shot up, releasing an animalistic growl. The rest knew who it could have been, recognizing the reaction from their little run in with Kikyo. Kagome swung out her katanas, furiously swiping at the bushes, exposing the intruder. She yelled out in fury as her swords almost made contact with his throat. The blades rested against his skin, drawing out a few beads of scarlet blood.

"Why are you here?!"She demanded harshly, her new strength renewed her sense of authority. Inuyasha looked up at her with blank amber eyes, seeing nothing but the infuriated expression on Kagome's face. How it had changed… it used to be so innocent, so happy. Now it was scarred, although not physically, she wore the face of a woman who had to endure hell and beyond; her crimson eyes showing pain, anger and blank coolness.

"Why did you come?" She asked coldly, her fuming expression slipping away, only to be replaced by vacant mask, void of emotion. It was a look of pure, raw hatred, something even Sesshomaru couldn't rival. Inuyasha's heart froze in its place, finally realizing the intensity of his actions. What he had done, or rather what _Kikyo _had done, had caused this woman to loathe him to the point where she thought that even death wasn't a suitable punishment. Then, he remembered why he had sought her out in the first place.

"I… I came to tell you what… really happened that night." He said with his head bowing down. Her expression remained unchanged, her swords unmoving, still drawing his precious crimson blood.

"You really think I don't know what happened? You really believe me to be a fool?! What happened that night was only a small portion of the huge wound that you had inflicted over time. That wound killed my old self, she cannot be brought back. I really couldn't care less about your excuses. That is why I left in the first place. I wanted to escape your lies, I didn't want to be blinded by my pathetic emotions and not see what has become of you." Kagome seethed impassively.

The rest of the Band of Seven sat forgotten on the other side of the fire. Jakotsu watched as his leader's face twisted into worry and pain. He closed his eyes and turned away from him. Did Kagome still love that useless traitor? Would she leave them?

"I… I had always thought that you left because of that night… I always thought that you would return, like you always did. I didn't realize-"

"You certainly are dense. The others had always told you how much I could have been hurting didn't they? But you couldn't get it through that thick skull of yours. You only realize this when your throat is about to be sliced by my hand? You truly are as worthless people as believed you to be."

She lifted her arms and prepared to strike, but a sacred arrow came flying at her chest. As an instant reaction, she recoiled and quickly threw her hand up. A black aura surrounded the arrow and it disintegrated into nothing but dust. She growled and sent a piercing glare at the perpetrator.

"See Inuyasha? This is what she has reduced to. Why continue to pine for her when the whore obviously has eyes for her comrades?" Kikyo's voice rang through the clearing. The group snarled and leapt forward, ready to rip the bitch to shreds. Whoever insults Kagome in such a lowly manner must certainly have a death wish. How can someone be so arrogant when they know full well of what the group is capable of?

"You're one to talk Kikyo. Stop hiding like a coward and get out here and fight!" Jakotsu growled in a strangely serious tone. The white and red clad priestess stepped out, her bow and arrow ready, and on her face, there was an overconfident grin. Kagome raised a brow as she watched Kikyo slink over to Inuyasha and kiss him full on the lips. The group rolled their eyes as they waited for her to stop kissing and start fighting. When she finally pulled away, she smirked as she waited for Kagome's reaction. All she saw was confusion and revulsion. She pouted in disappointment and sighed.

"I guess, you'll just have to go the more painful way…" She drew her arrow and let it fly. She smirked cockily as the arrow glowed its bright pink and headed straight for her rival's heart. Kagome sighed and moved her arm over her head. Before the arrow could reach her, it was caught in a barrier made of magic. Kikyo frowned in frustration and tried again, only to have the same thing repeated.

She growled and took out her "secret weapon" which turned out to be a dagger forged for purification. It eerily resembled the dagger Kagome's grandfather hung on the wall of his bedroom to "keep away the evil spirits".

"Finally, you start to get serious!" Kagome sighed. Kikyo was getting tired of being mocked and furiously ran forward, dagger aimed for her reincarnation's neck. When Kagome didn't even move away, Kikyo's anger levels increased to epic proportions. Kagome stood her ground, awaiting Kikyo's attack. Before she got the chance to drive the dagger into her throat, Kagome quickly knelt down and stuck her leg out, sending Kikyo to the ground. Kikyo leaped up, bow in hand, and fired multiple sacred purifying arrows at her opponent. Kagome had swiftly dodged them all. She reached for the gun at her waist (which had never been used until now) and fired at the clay woman. She purposely missed most of her shots, wanting some more fun and action, instead of ending too quickly. Bankotsu was starting to rub off on her…

"Aahh!" Kikyo screamed as a bullet lodged itself into her right shoulder, shattering some of her chest and arm, like a porcelain doll. She took hold of her dagger once again and swiped at her skillful enemy. Kagome wiped out her dagger as well and the two clashed together in a shower of sparks. Kagome smirked.

"When is the real battle gonna start? This warm up is getting tiring." Kikyo's eyes widened and screamed her rage. Kagome didn't even break a sweat, and here she was, exhausted and weak. Kagome seemed to be mocking her with pitiful looks and gave her the overwhelming sense of how the battle was to end.

Kikyo knew for sure that she would not lose Inuyasha to a bitch who didn't even love him and that for sure did not want to go back to hell. She gave the last of her energy and lunged at Kagome's chest, for once actually hitting her target. The dagger went through her chest and was wedged into the tree behind her, splattering blood all over her front and Kikyo's face. Kagome's eyes darkened, her face covered by her bangs as blood dripped down her chin. Bankotsu gasped and leaped to save her, but the rest held him back, despite his struggles, wanting to see if her wish had indeed worked. Inuyasha noticed this and sat dejectedly at the base of a tree.

Kikyo smiled deviously. "How does it feel to be defeated by me again? Even when you have magic, I could still defeat you with a mere dagger." She laughed triumphantly and turned to leave. Kagome let out an ominous chuckle with slowly turned into a menacing laugh. Kikyo, shocked, slowly turned around. Kagome looked up and smiled. She reached for the dagger and yanked the bloodied handle out of her chest.

"You really believe a puny dagger can stop me? If you do, then you've got serious issues to attend to." Those were the last words Kikyo ever heard before feeling her body being shattered like glass with her own dagger.

With that last action, Kagome fell to the ground, injured, but alive…

**AN: Can I please ask that you review on both chapters 9 and 10 and not just one just because I posted two in the same day? I mean if you truly don't want to, then its fine. **

**Vampgrl1**


	10. New Found Wounds

**Well...chapter 10!**

**Disclaimer: Uggggh. I DONT OWN INUYASHA! -yelling at the copyright people-**

Bankotsu immediately rushed to Kagome's side, pressing his fingers against the sides of her neck to check for a pulse. It was still going strong and he let out a relieved sigh. He ripped a part of his haori off and wrapped it against Kagome's smaller cuts.

"AHEM! Suikotsu! Now would be a good time to change into `good doctor mode'!" He shouted expectantly. Suikotsu smiled sheepishly and rushed over with Kagome's first aid kit. Bankotsu stepped to the side and prepared Kagome's sleeping bag, where Suikotsu gently set her down.

Renkotsu glared at Inuyasha and quickly tied him to a tree, the half-demon not even resisting the slightest. _`The guy's lost his fighting spirit. How pathetic.'_

Jakotsu simply walked over to the remains of Kikyo's clay body and kicked them away into the bushes. Any passerby would probably think he was getting rid of the smashed bits of a clay jar. Renkotsu snickered as Jakotsu began to stomp on the shards of clay.

"Hey Ren, wanna finish the job?"

"With pleasure." He took a sip of the mysterious concoction in his gourd and spewed flames out of his mouth. The clay bits burned away and nothing was left but dusty particles and a charred bush. The two looked over at Kagome, who lay limply on her sleeping bag. Suikotsu was busy disinfecting and wrapping up her injuries. He then looked over at her biggest wound, the one in her chest. His face turned red as he looked over at his leader.

"Uh… about this wound-"

"I'm sure as HELL you are not touching her there!" Bankotsu growled. Suikotsu gulped and scooted away. Bankotsu looked down at her and blushed again. Was he the one to do the job? Sure, he loved her, but… what if she woke up while he was bandaging her? She would NOT be happy. Not at all. He would probably be lucky if he escaped with a black eye and a few broken bones…

"Um… Why don't we let Jak wrap her up?" He stammered. He detested the idea as well, but not as much as he hated the idea of Kagome waking up in such a way. Jakotsu was interested in men, so if she were to awake, Kagome won't have to worry about him doing anything perverted. Jakotsu just shrugged and walked over whilst the others quickly turned around, warmth covering all their cheeks. (A/N: KAWAII!! ^///^)

Jakotsu took off her blood-soaked shirt and observed the wound (NO, not in THAT way… Perverts). He grabbed the roll of bandages and began to cover the injury. He flipped her over on her stomach and blanched at what he saw. On her back were three gruesome gashes the raked across her skin from her right shoulder to her left hip. It looked to be a fresh wound, still bright red and scabbed, something that probably happened very recently. Inuyasha, who sat forgotten at the base of the tree, watched with worried eyes.

"Holy shit…"

"Holy shit my ass! Hurry up Jak!"

"Seriously Aniki, you should come see this… it looks awful." Bankotsu quickly turned around and looked over. He openly gasped at the sight of the newly discovered wound. He looked worriedly at Kagome's pale face, twisted by an unknown pain. The other two turned over and cringed at the sight.

"Aniki, this doesn't look like it's been inflicted by a regular demon, it looks like powerful sorcery." Suikotsu said gravely.

"That's 'cause it is." Their eyes all snapped over in Kagome's direction. She was trying to push herself off the ground, completely forgetting she was topless. "Remember when I told you how I had found that ancient scroll and used it to learn dark magic? Hn, it came with a price. Every time I use magic, the gashes are reopened."

"But you said you used your priestess powers to harvest magic!"

"I do. My priestess energy is tainted and concentrated into one body part. Then it can be converted into magic. But in order to use those dark powers, I have to give a sacrifice of blood, willingly or not. That's why it's called `dark magic'. But thankfully, as long as I don't use it too often, it will only bleed at the end of the day." She explained wearily as she pulled on a fresh new shirt.

"If that's the case, then you are not to use those powers again!" Bankotsu growled

"So what if I lose blood? I'm immortal now, we all are, remember?"

"But-"

"Come on, Bankotsu! You used to be more fun. These gashes, as bad as they look, don't hurt much at all! Please?" She pleaded with her best puppy dog look. Bankotsu couldn't resist that. It just wasn't fair!

"Ugh, alright, but only if you swear to use your powers only when it is absolutely necessary, like in battle."

"…Whatever. Since when did you become my dad anyway?"

"…I'm not sure how I should respond to that."

The others watched in amusement. They acted just like a married couple… Then they remembered that lonesome man tied to the tree. In his amber eyes, there was nothing but helplessness, and jealousy. Jakotsu scoffed at the sight.

"I can't believe I used to swoon over _that_." He said in disgust.

"None of us can." Renkotsu mumbled.

"Oi! Aniki, Imouto! What do you think we should do about the trash tied up against the tree?" Suikotsu shouted. Kagome stepped over carefully, clutching the wound in her chest. She looked him straight in the eye and sneered.

"I think we've done enough damage. Just look at the empty glaze in his eyes. He's lost it. We can either let him go, or we can leave him tied up. It's as simple as that."

They all looked quizzically at the man. He looked utterly broken. His eyes lost their shine and he dejectedly slumped over the rope that bound him. They almost wanted to pity him, almost.

"I say we let him go. I mean, how much trouble could a guy like this do to us? `Oohh, my dead girlfriend died _again…_ I just wanna give up on _life_ ' That's pretty sad, man." Kagome snickered. Bankotsu rolled his eyes. Using his enormous Banryu, his sliced the ropes, not even bothering to be clean and precise. The blade grazed Inuyasha robes and skin, making him wince slightly. He sent an empty gaze Kagome's way and hopped away, leaving a few droplets of blood in his wake.

**AN: XD Last chapter! Now I can write!**


	11. The Plan

**Alrighty~ I finally have time to write. Sorry about the long wait.**

**Disclaimer:…I don't own Inuyasha.**

Inuyasha went bounding through the trees towards Kaede's hut. Every once in a while he would wince in pain from Bankotsu's Banryu hitting him. Then he would take a hesitant look towards it and continue.

Finally he arrived at the hut and rushed in so that he could get some bandages from Kaede. When he rushed in, Sango and Miroku looked up and gave him wide eyed looks.

"W-what happened to you, Inuyasha?" Sango asked, slowly standing and walking over to look at his wounds.

He looked down at his hands in sadness. Then he looked back up and gave everyone a weary glance.

"It was Kagome. She.." He shook his head, as to try to rid the thoughts.

"She..what? Inuyasha, what did she do?" Sango asked, giving him a hard but worried look.

He looked away again. "She's different now. She joined the Band of Seven. I can't believe that what I did caused her to do that. She…wants to kill me…with a passion" He stalked away from them and sat in front of Kaede so that she could bandage his wounds. She hadn't said a word this whole time.

She shook her head and began working on healing Inuyasha.

Sango looked at Miroku with hurt eyes. She looked like she was on the verge of crying. Miroku quickly wrapped his arms around her and laid his head on top of hers. She buried her head in his shoulder.

All of sudden Miroku turned and gave Inuyasha a glare.

"_This _is _your _fault! If you hadn't had went off with Kikyo every damn night then Kagome wouldn't be like this! The agony and pain that you caused her resulted in this!" Miroku shook his head and led Sango outside so that he could try to comfort her.

Inuyasha didn't have a snarky remark. He knew it was true. He had hurt her. He understood that. He saw that in her eyes when she had looked at him. But he wasn't going to give up. He had to try to get the Kagome that he knew back. He got a look of determination on his face and stood up. Kaede had finished bandaging his wounds and retired back to working on the pot of stew that she had originally had been cooking.

"Inuyasha, ye need to understand that ye hurt Kagome deeply. Ye can't expect her to come back into ye's arms with a simple sorry." Kaede said, without breaking her gaze at the pot.

Inuyasha silently nodded his head and walked outside so that he could try to find Sango and Miroku. He had a favor to ask of them.

He quickly found them two over by a tree in Inuyasha's Forest. He walked over towards them and waiting for one of them to look at him so that he could propose his thoughts.

Miroku looked up and gave him a small glare and then an expectant look.

"What do you need, Inuyasha?" he asked, coldly. Sango then looked over at him and got a look of confusion on her face. Then she also gave Inuyasha an expectant look.

Inuyasha sighed. "Well, I was thinking it over in the hut and I was wondering if you two would want to join me in trying to find Kagome and try to get _our_ Kagome back? I know that I screwed up and im completely sorry. But I want to try to get her back. I need her back." Inuyasha looked at them, waiting for a response of some sort.

Miroku and Sango gave a small smile and they both nodded.

"We have been waiting for that from you for a little while. We would have suggested it earlier but we knew that you needed to come to your senses first. So we waited. But, yes Inuyasha, we want to find Kagome and bring our Kagome back too," Sango said while walking over to Inuyasha. She gave him a small hug and then walked to Kaede's hut.

Miroku smiled at Sango's retreating figure and then looked at Inuyasha.

"Im glad that you finally came to your senses, buddy. But it took a little longer than I thought it would." Miroku gave a frown but then smiled. He walked over and gave Inuyasha a pat on the back and then said, "We'll start on the journey tomorrow." Inuyasha then nodded silently.

Miroku started towards Kaede's hut and Inuyasha trudged after him. In the hut, they came up with a new plan for the journey. They needed to catch the Band of Seven and Kagome by surprise.

XxXxX

After the incident with Inuyasha, Kagome and the Band of Seven returned to their camp and acted as if nothing had happened. But then the curiosity of Jakotsu got the better of him and he had to ask Kagome the question that had been on the minds of all the men.

"Kags, why did we let Inuyasha go? Why didn't we just kill him right then and there?" Jakotsu asked while indicating with his head the spot that Inuyasha had sat not a hour ago.

Kagome looked thoughtful for a moment then a smirk appeared on her face.

"Because I want to have fun with him. I want to tease and torture him like he did to me." She said.

They all got a malicious smile on their face and nodded.

Suikotsu threw his arm over her shoulder and smirked. "That's my girl!" he said. Bankotsu then growled and Suikotsu quickly retracted his arm. Kagome then giggled and raised her eyebrow at Bankotsu.

"Jealous?" she whispered so only he could hear her.

He scoffed and shook his head. She then chuckled and focused her attention on the conversation that the rest of the group was talking about which was what tactic they were going to use at the next village.

Then finally they all decided to head to bed and go to sleep. Once they all had laid down and Kagome knew that they were all asleep from their snoring, she silently rose and walked off towards a little clearing that she had found recently. She sat down in the middle of the clearing and leaned back until she was laying again the plush grass. She closed her eyes and sighed.

"Found her" a voice said.

**AN: So what do you think? Review please! I really want to see what you guys think~!**

**Vampgrl1**


	12. Don't Turn Your Back on a Friend

**Ok well I've been getting a lot of reviews like 'I wonder who the voice was' and such things like that. I mean I admit I would be the same way. But before I continue the chapter and before you continue reading the chapter, I would like all of you to go to the previous chapter and look at the last line of Inuyasha's POV. ;) You don't have to though. But it would be useful.**

**Okay, now enjoy! **

**Disclaimer: Ha-chan (me): Inuyasha come here please!  
Inuyasha: No way! You don't own me!  
Ha-chan: Yes I do!  
-Rumiko Takahashi walks in and glares at me-  
Ha-chan: Uh um nevermind. I don't own anyone!  
-Rumiko smiles and walks out of the room with Inuyasha smirking and me pouting-**

**KPOV  
**As soon as she heard the voice, she sprung up and quickly got her katana out but she stumbled when her gaze fell upon who was standing there.

Inuyasha, Miroku, Sango, Shippo, and Kirara was all standing there.

She quickly regained composure and glared at them.

"What do you want?" If you have come to beg me to return to your 'group' and expected me to actually oblige with your begs then you have been misled. I am home with the Band of Seven."

She put her katana back in the place on her back, turned, and began walked back towards camp.

"Kagome! Please just hear us out! Inuyasha didn't mean to hurt you!" Sango yelled.

Kagome laughed and turned around with a look of amusement on her face.

"Didn't mean to hurt me? Bullshit! He knew what pain he was causing me and even apologized! But every night I would find him off somewhere sucking face with the whore!" Kagome yelled.

"I had to! It was the only way to protect you. Kikyo said that if I didn't go with her, that she would kill you. I couldn't let that happen. And she told me not to tell you, otherwise she would still kill you," Inuyasha said, taking a step or two. But Kagome mimicked his movement by taking a step or two back.

Kagome scoffed.

"Is that the best made-up crap that you could come up with? I'm tired of listening to your shit Inuyasha so I'm going to take the advice of my fellow band members and kill you right here and now."

Kagome quickly pulled out both her katanas and threw one straight at his heart. Sango then moved her hiraikotsu in front just in time for the katana to hit it. Kagome growled. But before she could do anything, Sango threw her hiraikotsu and aimed for Kagome. Kagome bent backwards and barely missed it. Before it could return to Sango, Kagome grabbed it and swung it behind her, off into the woods.

She turned back towards Inuyasha's group and smirked. She then threw her other katana and smiled.

This time there would be no interferences.

As it was about to hit Inuyasha, Sango jumped in front and it hit her instead, right through the stomach. She dropped to her knees and was instantly surrounded by Miroku, Shippo, Kirara, and Inuyasha.

Kagome got a look of frustration on her face and growled. **(I kept reading over this part and I didnt like how Kagome showed weakness THAT QUICK. So I revised it. I would like to thank Cassie M. M. for the next line xD I'll put brackets {} around the line that she thought of. ^_^)**

**{**"Sango! What the HELL? I didn't want for YOU to get hurt, just that jackass Inuyasha! Why did you have to jump in the way?**}**" She growled again.

Just as that was happening, the Band of Seven was running out.

"Kagome! Did they hurt you? If they did, I swear I'll kill them all," Bankotsu said, looking Kagome up and down.

Kagome looked at Bankotsu and smiled.

"No, they didn't hurt me." She glanced at Miroku, Inuyasha, and Shippo trying to help Sango. "But Sango got in the way of my katana that was SUPPOSE to hit Inuyasha." She sighed. "So, now I guess we can just wait till they come around again. I kind of wanna have more fun with them," She said. She smiled and nudged her head towards the woods and they all nodded.

They all started walked towards camp.

"Kagome!"

She stopped but didn't turn around. She looked at the Band of Seven.

"Go on. I'll be there in a second. You know they won't be able to hurt me." She smiled and winked. They smiled back and nodded and continued on.

She turned around with a smirk on her face. It was Miroku who called her name. He was glaring at her with such hatred but also sympathy in his eyes.

"Are you happy? Sango is almost dead and it's _your_ fault. What Inuyasha and Sango were telling you was the truth. Kikyo really did set Inuyasha and you up so that you two couldn't be together. But your being a bitch and now it has basically caused Sango her life. But there is one way you can make it up. You _are_ still a priestess and you still have your healing powers. So you can heal her. So do it. Now." Miroku commanded.

Kagome smirked but slowly walked over to Sango. She put her hands on Sango's wounds and closed her eyes. Then a white light came from her hands and Sango's wounds started disappearing. Once it was healed, Kagome pulled back her hands but kept the light on her hands. She smirked and threw out a burst that threw Inuyasha and Miroku to their feet.

Then Shippo, Inuyasha, Miroku, Sango, and Kirara all started moaning/meowing in pain.

Kagome dispersed the light from her hands and they all took a breath. She looked at them and gave them an evil smile.

"_That_ was for turning your back on a friend."

She got up, gave them a wink, and walked away.

...Leaving them thinking how the hell they were going to get her back.

**AN: SOOOOOO What did you think? I thought it was pretty good. But I'm the writer so I'm **_**suppose**_** to think that about my own work ;) So review please!**

**Vampgrl1**


	13. Second Thoughts?

**Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry! I tried to update like so many times and everytime I tried to login, FanFiction wouldn't let me! So now I'm using my friends computer real quick to update this story. But anyways, to BankotsuandSesshy, no you may not have my story. It's not my fault that I couldn't update. Sorry.  
But you guys are probably sick of hearing from me so on to the story!**

**Disclaimer: Dunt own Inuyasha. At all. Like none. Pinkie promise.**

**KPOV**

As I slowly made my way to camp, I was thinking about what was possibly running through their minds at the moment. Hmm… probably shock, disbelief, hurt, anger, etc.

I began to chuckle. Gosh how much I enjoy getting revenge on them.

I sighed. I finally made it back to camp. I could no more than take a step into camp and Bankotsu and the rest were swarmed around me. They were each yelling things at me like 'what happened' and 'did they hurt you' and of course coming from Bankotsu 'ima hurt them if they did'. I simply put my middle and pointer finger in my mouth and whistled. They each reached to cover their ears and took a few steps back. I laughed.

"Guys. Calm down. They didn't hurt me and they didn't touch me. Actually I hurt them."

I gave them a very dark smile and they returned it. Bankotsu walked up and put his arm around my shoulders.

"That's my girl." And then he chuckled.

As we were all sitting around the campfire, I began to think about what I had done. Maybe I was a _little _extreme.

Before I could continue my thoughts, Suikotsu fired the question that has probably been haunting all their minds.

"Kags, I know this isn't really any of my business but why did you heal her if you want them dead? You could have just killed all of them off if you wanted to but you didn't. So why?"

All of them turned their heads toward me and waited patiently for an answer. Of course, I had to give them one. I honestly didn't know why I had spared them but I couldn't tell them that. So I made up an excuse that was partly true but partly wasn't.

I smirked. "Now guys. You know I like to have fun. What fun would it have been if I would have just killed them off right then and there? Nah, there's no fun to that. So I decided to keep it a challenge."

They all smiled and chuckled.

"Ah men don't you just love her?" Ren asked.

They all chuckled again and went back to slurping their ramen and I went back to my thoughts. I continually had to remind myself that what I said was true. I had just kept them alive so that I could have more of a challenge. Not because I actually still cared. No, I didn't care. Did I? Of course not!

I shook my head and stood up.

"Guys I'm gonna find a hot spring. I'll be back later."

I grabbed my shampoo, conditioner, towels, and scrub and headed off towards where I could see steam rising in the distance between the trees. I took my time getting there and then when I got there, slowly peeled away my clothes and slipped into the warm, refreshing water.

For a few minutes, I just laid there and relaxed with my head resting back against the grass. Then while I was scrubbing shampoo into my hair, I randomly heard voices off in the distance. I quickly froze and tuned into the conversation.

"Can you believe her? I-I just don't see what happened. She changed so much. What in the hell happened, Miroku?"

She gasped but quickly quieted. That voice was Inuyasha. Then came another voice who she recognized as Sango.

"Inuyasha, how is he supposed to know? None of us know what happened to her. Obviously, while she was in the future, she did something to change her personality as well as her powers. Inuyasha, you heard part of her conversation when you went looking for her and you said she said something about how she transformed her priestess powers. What did she exactly say?"

Inuyasha grunted. "All she said was that she read a scroll that taught her how to transform her priestess powers into dark, evil powers. That's all she said about it."

The next voice Kagome recognized as Shippo. She almost whimpered when she heard his voice. She actually missed him.

"But she must still care about us, right? She saved Sango, didn't she? She didn't have to. She could have just killed us all right then. But she didn't. She actually healed Sango. I bet she just did the painful part to show that she is still mad at all of us for betraying her for Kikyo. Which technically we didn't. We did what we had to do to keep her alive. I just wish she would listen to us so that we can explain it." Shippo's voice sounded so dead and sad. Kagome felt so bad. She had caused this. She had caused this poor boy this hollow voice and personality.

Kagome quickly but quietly got out of the hot spring and gathered her things. She couldn't listen to this anymore. If she heard anymore, she would most likely crawl back to them in tears and she couldn't do that. She couldn't just abandon her Band of Seven family like that. She was torn between the two opposing sides. She loved both of them. But Inuyasha's side had betrayed her and she most likely couldn't forgive them for that even if it was true about them having to do it to save her life. Sango, or Miroku, or Shippo could have told her. But they didn't.

She shook her head and frowned. No. She couldn't forgive them and she couldn't go back. She belonged with the Band of Seven and that was final.

Right?

**AN: Oh my gosh! Yay! I'm so happy to be uploading this! :D Well I really really hope you guys enjoy. I love you guys! Bye bye!**

~Vampgrl1


End file.
